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CQ'S Washington Alert 10122198 Senate Floor: Fda Director, Census Head and Judges Confirmed as Year
Abstract
The Senate yesterday confirmed Jane E. Henney to run the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The action was part of a package of about 80 of President Clinton's nominations that were confirmed in a series of voice votes as the Senate's last piece of business in the 105th Congress.
Fields
- Named Organization
- Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
- Senate
- University of New Mexico
- Named Person
- Henney, Jane E.
- Kessler, David A., M.D., J.D. (Former FDA Commissioner)appointed FDA Commissioner by President George Bush in December 1990.
- Nickles, Don
- Sammon, Richard
- Date Loaded
- 18 Jul 2005
- Box
- 8577
Document Images
CQ's WASHINGTON ALERT 10122198
SENATE FLOOR: FDA DIRECTOR, CENSUS HEAD AND JUDGES
CONFIRMED AS YEAR ENDS
*Hill News Highlights*
(NEWS 10/22/98; 60 lines)
Item Key: 16113
By Richard Sammon, CQ Staff Wdter
The Senate yesterday confirmed Jane E. Henney to run the Food and
Drug Administration (FDA). The action was part of a package of about 80
of President Clinton's nominations that were confirmed in a series of
voice votes as the Senate's last piece of business in the 105th
Congress.
Henney will serve as the first female commissioner of the FDA and
will succeed David A. Kessler, who resigned last year to become dean of
the Yale School of Medicine.
Henney received broad support from members of the Labor and Human
Resources Committee, which approved her nomination on Sept. 23. But
some conservatives, including Michael B. Enzi, R-Wyo., raised concerns
about her support for approval of the controversial "morning after" abortion
drug known as RU-486.
Prospects for her confirmation received a boost on Tuesday when
Majority Whip Don Nickles, R-Okla., said he would not block her
confirmation, as he had threatened. Nickles said he received assurances
from Henney that she would not allow the agency to veer away from its
core mission to "ensure food safety and expeditiously review drugs and,
medical devices."
Nickles said that under the management of Kessler, the agency "too
often became a tool of the administration to push its liberal political
agenda ... especially in FDA's attempt to regulate tobacco."
Nickles also said he has written assurances from Henney that she
will not have the agency solicit product applications for development of
RU-486.
TI3599-!432
Since 1994, Henney has been vice president of health sciences at the
University of New Mexico. Before that, she spent two years as depu~'
commissioner under Kessler. From 1980 to 1985, she was deputy director
of the National Cancer Institute.
TI35~9-!433
